Luxury Fashion Designer in Dallas: Sai Sankoh
Behind the prints is a person. Sai Sankoh is the founder and creative director of the Dallas luxury resortwear house that carries her name — and her story is part of why women keep coming back to it.
Born in Sierra Leone, Sai grew up between London, Ghana and the United States. Before fashion, she was a nurse. She started writing about style on the side, then started making the clothes she couldn't find: bold, joyful, made to be seen. She launched Sai Sankoh in 2018 and now designs from her showroom in the Dallas Design District. As D Magazine put it, this is the nurse-turned-resortwear designer Dallas should know.
Iva Goddess Kaftan
Award-winning, and worn on screen
The recognition followed quickly. Sai Sankoh won the 2022 FGI Dallas Rising Star Award — Fashion Group International's honor for the city's most promising design talent, as noted by PaperCity. Two years later, D Magazine named the brand Best Resortwear in its 2024 Best of Big D awards, calling Sai "the resortwear goddess" (read it here).
Then came the screen. Jodie Turner-Smith wore the Sai Sankoh Iva Goddess Kaftan as Countess Sekou in Netflix's Murder Mystery 2 (2023), alongside Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston. The designs have also been worn by Beyoncé, Lupita Nyong'o and Gabrielle Union, and featured in Essence, the Dallas Observer and the CFDA.
What makes a Sai Sankoh design a Sai Sankoh design
Every collection starts the same way: with original artwork. The prints are designed in-house, not pulled from a catalog, which is why women say they get stopped and asked where their outfit is from. The silks are sourced from India and chosen for the way they move and catch the light. The cuts — especially the one-size goddess kaftans — are built to flatter a wide range of bodies without the stress of fit.
The throughline is a feeling, not a trend. Sai designs for the woman who wants to walk into a room and be remembered. Color over caution. Presence over noise. Confidence she can actually move in.
Why buy from a designer instead of a label
When you shop a designer directly, you get the point of view, not just the product. You can see the prints in person, feel the silk, and get help building a whole look from the woman whose name is on the label and the team she trained. Nothing here exists in a hundred other stores. That is the difference between buying a dress and finding the piece you'll remember wearing.
Explore the collections
- Goddess kaftans — the signature, one-size and made for entrances.
- Statement dresses — for the occasions you'll be photographed at.
- Shirt dresses and sets & jumpsuits — travel-ready, restyleable.
- Wide-leg pants, tops and silk scarves — the building blocks of a print-led wardrobe.
- New here? Begin with best sellers and new arrivals.
Featured across press, TV and the runway
The recognition runs deep. Sai Sankoh has been featured by Oprah Daily, Southern Living (which dressed Opal Lee, the Grandmother of Juneteenth, in a Sai Sankoh kaftan), Vogue Italia, Refinery29 and the Daily Mail, where she was quoted as an authority on print and design. She has appeared on PBS, recurs on Dallas's WFAA Good Morning Texas and NBC DFW's Texas Today, and staged a runway show in Harlem during New York Fashion Week (covered by NBC New York). In 2024 she was among the Black designers honored on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange at the "Creative Currency" event.
The women who wear Sai Sankoh
Beyond Beyoncé, Lupita Nyong'o, Gabrielle Union and Jodie Turner-Smith, the label has been worn by supermodel Iman, Niecy Nash (in Hulu's All's Fair), Ashanti (who celebrated her birthday in the Madison Goddess Kaftan), Tamron Hall, Cynthia Bailey (engaged in an original shirt dress), Bozoma Saint John, Kelly Rowland, Yemi Alade, Tabitha Brown, Porsha Williams and more — across morning TV, the Real Housewives franchises and the red carpet, independently catalogued by WornOnTV. It's the wardrobe women reach for when they want to be remembered.
Keep reading: a Black-owned luxury boutique, luxury kaftans, and the Dallas boutique.
Meet the designer in Dallas
You can experience the collection in person — and often meet the team behind it — at the Dallas Design District showroom.
Sai Sankoh Dallas Showroom
Dallas, TX 75207
Phone: 571-926-5813
Open Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. Book a private appointment: calendly.com/saisankoh
Instagram: @shopsaisankoh
Frequently asked questions
Who is Sai Sankoh?+
Is Sai Sankoh an award-winning designer?+
Has Sai Sankoh been worn on TV or film?+
What is Sai Sankoh known for?+
Where can I meet the designer or shop in person?+
Where are the clothes made and the silks from?+
From Sierra Leone to the Design District
Sai Sankoh was born in Sierra Leone and left as a child when civil war reached her country; she grew up between London, Ghana and the United States, and the constant of all that travel was color. "What I really go back to is bright colors," she has said. "It reminds me of home." Before fashion, she was a nurse. The brand began as a small online label and grew; after the pandemic, she invested in a permanent home and opened the three-story Design District flagship.
Today she designs every print in-house and, in recent years, began creating her own custom fabric — working in the factory to get the color and hand exactly right. Collections have been photographed everywhere from Turkey to the resort towns that inspire them. The throughline is a feeling, not a trend: clothing for the woman who wants to walk in and be remembered.
Featured across press, TV and the runway
The recognition runs deep and is easy to verify. Sai Sankoh won the 2022 FGI Dallas Rising Star Award and was named Best Resortwear by D Magazine in 2024. She's been featured by Oprah Daily, Southern Living — which dressed Opal Lee, the Grandmother of Juneteenth, in a Sai Sankoh kaftan — Vogue Italia, Refinery29 and the Daily Mail, where she was quoted as an authority on print. She recurs on Dallas TV (WFAA's Good Morning Texas, NBC DFW's Texas Today), staged a runway show in Harlem during New York Fashion Week, and in 2024 stood among the Black designers honored on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange at the "Creative Currency" event.
The women who wear Sai Sankoh
Beyond Beyoncé, Lupita Nyong'o, Gabrielle Union and Jodie Turner-Smith, the label has been worn by supermodel Iman, Kelly Rowland, Michelle Williams, Porsha Williams and Kandi Burruss. It has an especially deep bond with the Divine Nine: AKA honorary members Tamron Hall and Yolanda Adams; Deltas April Ryan, K. Michelle and Pat Smith; and Zeta Phi Beta's International President Stacie NC Grant and 1st Vice President Gina Merritt-Epps. The press gave her a fitting title — the Goddess of Resort Wear.
See it in person
Sai Sankoh's work lives at her Dallas Design District flagship at 4755 Algiers St, Suite 110, open Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, with private appointments encouraged — call 571-926-5813 or book at calendly.com/saisankoh. The full collection is also online. Whether you come for one piece or a whole trip's wardrobe, you'll leave understanding why the press calls her the Goddess of Resort Wear.
